Leonard Dacre
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Leonard Dacre (by 1533 – 12 August 1573) was an English nobleman, one of the promoters of the Northern Rebellion against Queen Elizabeth.


Life

He was the second son of William Dacre, 3rd Baron Dacre of Gilsland and brother of
Thomas Dacre, 4th Baron Dacre Thomas Dacre, 4th Baron Dacre of Gilsland, 8th Baron Greystoke (''ca.'' 1527 – 1 July 1566) was an English Member of Parliament and after his father's death a peer and major landowner in the counties of Cumberland, Yorkshire and Northu ...
. He is estimated to have been born by 1533. His family, pre-eminent in Cumberland, was among the oldest and most powerful on the northern border. He attended Parliament as
knight of the shire Knight of the shire () was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 ...
for
Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...
in 1558, 1559 and 1563. He became deeply implicated in the project for the liberation of
Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...
, to whom he wrote friendly letters in 1566. On 17 May 1569 his nephew, George Dacre, 5th Baron Dacre was accidentally killed, in his minority, by the fall of a wooden vaulting-horse at
Thetford Thetford is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District of Norfolk, England. It is on the A11 road (England), A11 road between Norwich and London, just east of Thetford Forest. The civil parish, coverin ...
,
Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...
. George was then in ward to
Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, (10 March 1536 or 1538 2 June 1572), was an English nobleman and politician. He was a second cousin of Queen Elizabeth I and held many high offices during the earlier part of her reign. Norfolk was the s ...
; and his three sisters, coheiresses to his estates, were married to the three sons of their guardian, the Duke of Norfolk. Leonard Dacre felt angry and slighted that a large patrimony should legally descend to his nieces. On the outbreak of the rebellion of 1569, Dacre went to court, and Queen Elizabeth, although she had heard that he had been secretly associated with the rebel earls, saw him at Windsor. He professed himself to be a faithful subject and returned to the north avowedly as an adherent of Elizabeth. Curtis C. Breight sees Dacre as "the best example of maneuvering a magnate into rebellion." In late November 1569, Thomas Radclyffe, Lord President of the North, listed Dacre among the "evil counselors" of the rebels although Dacre was not with them at Durham. The disorderly flight of the rebels from
Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden nearby, and close to Hadrian's Wall. Hexham was the administra ...
convinced him that their cause was desperate. He therefore tried to consolidate a position, seized
Greystoke Castle Greystoke Castle is in the village of Greystoke, Cumbria, Greystoke west of Penrith, Cumbria, Penrith in the county of Cumbria in northern England. (). It is owned by the Howard family and is a private residence including a castle and family est ...
and other houses belonging to the Dacre family, and fortified
Naworth Castle Naworth Castle, also known or recorded in historical documents as "Naward", is a castle in Cumbria, England, near the town of Brampton, Carlisle, Brampton. It is adjacent to the A69 road (England), A69 road from Newcastle upon Tyne to Carlisle, ...
as his own inheritance. He gathered together three thousand troops, borderers and Dacre loyalists. On 24 December 1569, he was actually commended by
Thomas Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Sussex Thomas Radclyffe (or Ratclyffe), 3rd Earl of Sussex KG (c. 15259 June 1583), was Lord Deputy of Ireland during the Tudor period of English history, and a leading courtier during the reign of Elizabeth I. Family He was the eldest son of ...
, lieutenant-general of the army of the north, for his honourable service against the rebels. For the
Council of the North The Council of the North was an administrative body first set up in 1484 by King Richard III of England, to improve access to conciliar justice in Northern England. This built upon steps by King Edward IV of England in delegating authority in th ...
, Henry le Scrope, 9th Baron Scrope of Bolton was more cautious. On 20 January 1570, he wrote to Cecil that he had received the lord-lieutenant's orders for taking Dacre into custody but that it would be hard to winkle him out of Naworth. Accordingly, Scrope tried to induce him to go to
Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its pro ...
, to hold a consultation on the state of the country. Dacre was too wary to leave his stronghold and replied that he was confined to his bed by an ague but added that if Scrope and his colleagues would take dinner at Naworth, they should have his company and the best advice that his simple head could devise. On 15 February,
Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (4 March 1526 – 23 July 1596) was an English peer and courtier. He was the patron of the Lord Chamberlain's Men, William Shakespeare's playing company. The son of Mary Boleyn, he was a cousin of Elizabeth I. ...
, who was at Berwick, received the queen's orders to apprehend Dacre. The battle which decided Dacre's fortune took place on 20 February. At dawn Lord Hunsdon and Sir John Forster came before Naworth Castle but found it so strongly defended that they determined to march to Carlisle to join the force under Lord Scrope. Dacre followed them for , to the banks of the Gelt River. His infantry charged Hunsdon's forces, at what is now called the Battle of Gelt Bridge. 'The Dacre tenantry rose splendidly to the occasion on behalf of their ancestral lords, giving what Hunsdon himself described as 'the proudest charge upon my shot that ever I saw'.' However, their attack was repulsed, and Hunsdon, although outnumbered by a factor of two, charged Dacre's foot with his cavalry, killing between 300 and 400 of the rebels and taking between 200 and 300 prisoners. Dacre escaped towards
Liddesdale Liddesdale is a district in the Roxburghshire, County of Roxburgh, southern Scotland. It includes the area of the valley of the Liddel Water that extends in a south-westerly direction from the vicinity of Peel Fell to the River Esk, Dumfries and ...
, despite a close pursuit. Dacre fled to Bedrule Castle in Scotland,Walter Laidlaw, 'On Armorial Bearings', ''History of the Berwickshire Naturalists' Club'', vol. 11 (Alnwick, 1887), p. 139: W. Elliot Lockhart, 'Notes on Branxholme', ''History of the Berwickshire Naturalists' Club'', vol. 11 (Alnwick, 1887), p. 449. and is said to have sat in a convention at
Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...
with the Scottish nobles in April 1570. Soon afterwards, he retired to Flanders, and in a letter from Francis Norton on 18 September 1571, he is stated to have applied to the
Duke of Alva Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ...
for arms. In June 1572 he was at
Mechlin Mechelen (; ; historically known as ''Mechlin'' in EnglishMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical context. T ...
. In the same year he wrote to
Jane Dormer Jane Dormer, Duchess of Feria (6 January 1538 – 13 January 1612) was an English lady-in-waiting to Mary I who, after the Queen's death, married Gómez Suárez de Figueroa y Córdoba, 1st Duke of Feria and went to live in Spain, where she wo ...
, Duchess of Feria, to urge
Philip II of Spain Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...
to take more energetic means relative to England, as the refugees were without hope. He was then receiving a pension from Philip of one hundred florins per month. A Latin epitaph upon a monumental stone formerly visible in the church of St. Nicholas at
Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...
records that he died in that city on 12 August 1573, then about 40.


Notes


References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dacre, Leonard 1573 deaths 16th-century English nobility English rebels
Leonard Leonard or ''Leo'' is a common English language, English masculine given name and a surname. The given name and surname originate from the Old High German ''Leonhard'' containing the prefix ''levon'' ("lion") from the Greek wikt:Λέων#Greek, Λ ...
Younger sons of barons Year of birth unknown English MPs 1558 English MPs 1559 English MPs 1563–1567 Year of birth uncertain